Vick's rookie season isn't remotely comparable to RG3 or Wilson.
In 2001, Vick, as a rookie, only played in 8 games and only started 2, completing 44% of his 113 passes for a 62.7 rating.
In 2002, in his SECOND year, he started 15 games and managed an 81.6 QBR, (which would be his career high until after returning from jail).
So, what did the Passer Rating chart look like in 2002 - (if we count his sophomore year as if it were his rookie year).
1 - 100+ passer (Pennington).
4 guys over 90.
McNabb was tied for 7th with Bledsoe (86.0)
And Brady we tied with Brunell for 9th at 85.7.
Vick's 81.6 - (his pre-jail career high), was "good" enough to rank 18th among all NFL QBs. He only played 5 games the next year, (with a 69.0 rating). So, moving to his 4th season in the NFL, he posted a 78.1 rating in 2004. That was 21st in the NFL, tied with that superstar of dropback QBs ... Tim Rattay.
Vick didn't finish in the top HALF of QB rating until after his stay in jail. (In fairness to Vick, he did manage a single season with a QB rating above 100. In 2010, at age 30, he squeaked out a 100.2. But that was in only 11 starts (not 16). And he plunged right back to 84.9 the next year and 78.1 this past season.
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Now yes ... comparing eras, a 102 QB Rating isn't the same in 2012 as it was in 1975. But I didn't read any comparisons of RG3 or Wilson to Staubach or Montana.
The fact is RG3 was the 3rd ranked QB in the NFL this year and Wilson was 4th. They ranked just behind Aaron Rodgers and Peyton Manning and just in front of Matt Ryan and Tom Brady. Ryan, as a rookie, managed an 87.7 rate. Five years of experience later, he's worked his way up to run with the elite.
Honestly, the guy who is a so-so pocket QB, (but with potential to improve), relying too much on his legs is Cam Newton. This is backed up by his 84.5 and 86.2 ratings for his first two seasons.
Could 2012 be "flukish" for RG3 and/or Wilson? Sure. It's "possible" to have a career year in your rookie season. But it is highly unlikely ... and is also nearly unheard of for NFL QBs.
Rogers, playing behind Favre for 3 years managed a 93.8 his first year starting, (his career rate is 104.9).
Peyton Manning managed a 71.2 rate as a rookie, then 90.7 in his 2nd season. He broke 100 for the first time in 2004.
Rivers managed a 92 in his first full season, (after 2 on the bench), but put together a trio of 100+ seasons at ages 27-29.
Brady posted an 86.5 in his first season starting, (2nd in the league), didn't break 100 until age 30 (2007), but does have a 96.6 career rating.
The point here is that even rookie QBs that step in and are immediately successful have almost never matched what Wilson and RG3 did this year. The closest comp would be Roethlisberger, who had a 98.1 in 2004 (good enough to rank 5th in the NFL). His career rating is 92.7. He's the only QB I can find with a downward move in QB rating after his rookie season, (mostly due to a horrid 3rd year, when he threw 23 interceptions for a 75.4 rating that year).
Yes, today we see 4 or 5 guys a year posting 100 ratings, whereas it used to be 1 guy. So, this means you're better than 28 other QBs instead of 31.
Perhaps the best evidence is Andrew Luck ... who, as a rookie, in the exact same era, managed a 76.5 rate this year.
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